


Devil on Your Back

by sugarshackpeasant



Category: Keeper of the Lost Cities Series - Shannon Messenger
Genre: Angst, Biana's a spy for the Neverseen au, Everblaze au, F/F, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-10
Updated: 2021-02-10
Packaged: 2021-03-16 08:08:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 928
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29329053
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sugarshackpeasant/pseuds/sugarshackpeasant
Summary: Biana's a spy for the Neverseen and she's at a crossroad.
Relationships: Sophie Foster/Biana Vacker
Comments: 2
Kudos: 5





	Devil on Your Back

**Author's Note:**

> Hope y'all like it. This is just a quick something.

**Devil on your back**

* * *

_(like old friends)_

There are many points in a person’s life where they reach a crossroad. Sometimes they’re small insignificant things that don’t change anything but the flap of a butterfly’s wings and other times you just know that whatever you choose will change everything. Somewhere on the other side of the world that butterfly’s wings would unleash a hurricane. Forces of nature were cruel and didn’t listen to reason. They were raw and more powerful than what people could imagine. Watching who she knew to be Lady Gisela’s hood be ripped away by the cold bitter wind, Biana knew that her crossroad would be life-altering. What she didn’t know was whether or not which road she would take.

“I don’t understand,” Biana heard Sophie say. The pieces of the puzzle that the Black Swan had intricately put together were wrong and now they would have to deal with the consequences. “She sounded like Lord Cassius.” They would never catch up, the clues were there, the Neverseen wasn’t that careful, and yet everyone had jumped to a different conclusion. The red wound on Lady Gisela’s shoulder, Lord Cassius’s missing pathfinder that led to the forbidden cities, the Sencen crest, the mimicking, someone could’ve- should’ve realized it earlier. There were ugly parts of their golden world, and why did she seem to be the only one who understood what it meant.

“You?” Keefe said as the realization dawned on him. He pointed to his family crest that was messily pinned to the folds of his thick cape. “But Dad was the one who gave this to me.” There was obviously a reason the Black Swan kept coming up short compared to the Neverseen. And who would want to be on the losing side? She had already lost so much and if the world was going to go down in flames she would rather be lighting the fire than burning in it. She’d been caught in the flames too many times to have sympathy for anyone but herself.

“And _I’m_ the one who gave it to him. Honestly, Keefe, don’t you know your father at all? He never set so much a hair out of place, especially if it risked all those honors he’s gotten from the Council.”

“But, Dad’s-” Apparently a bad childhood is a hard thing to let go (she would know), but Biana pushes the guilt away. Keefe would join the Neverseen eventually; he wasn’t raised to be the hero (neither was she) and you couldn't fight who you were, no matter how much she wanted to. “A jerk?” Lady Gisela taunted. Say what you wanted about them but everyone who was in the Neverseen had a weakness for monologuing dramatically (herself included), and one day it could lead to their downfall. But the day she loses again, will be a cold day in hell, because she isn’t about to go down without a fight.

“Yes, he is. And your hating him has been hugely helpful to me. Every time I slipped and let any emotions that might’ve given me away show through, I could just blame it on your latest mess. In fact, when I return home tonight, all he’ll feel is a mother distraught over her son’s tragic disappearance.” Harsh words but it would pay off in the end (no matter how jaded and bitter); the first step to understanding was the realization of what the world had come to. What would happen next was what Biana had been preparing for. Playing the role depending on what Lady Gisela needed from her.

“You monster!” she shouted, letting Lady Gisela know where she was. She grabbed Biana’s cloak and pressed the melder against her head. “I wouldn’t move, if I were you. Pledge your loyalty. Now.”

There was light on one side of the tunnel and it wasn’t the path that included the Black Swan. It wasn’t a choice, at least not anymore. It was a command. Everything she had been working towards, it had all led up to this. Alvar had warned her what she was getting herself into, what would happen, what it would mean. She just didn’t think that the day would come so soon.

Biana braced herself. What she was supposed to do next would change everything. But wasn’t that what she wanted. Their world was broken (she was broken) and it was time to start fixing it. Their world was like a jagged piece of glass and someone needed to smooth out the rough edges before someone got cut. She had danced along the edge before and bleeding out wasn’t an option this time. She’d made her choice before she even realized she had. Now it was just going to be well known.

“I’m all yours.” She said it with such a smooth composure too, acting like there wasn’t a silent war settling itself in the deepest part of her heart. The words demanded several beats of nothingness, while everyone took in what was happening. Everyone knew that if you stared into the void long enough, one day it would stare back.Everything was falling into place. Everything would get better. Everything would _be_ better. So when Biana raised the green leaping crystal up to the sky, she knew she was making the right choice. At least she hoped so. If not, it was better to go out in a blaze of something instead of jumping at the shadows of nothing. She wasn’t raised to be the hero and it was time for everyone to accept it.


End file.
